Advantages of dual degree/concentrations

[Isaac]

Hey guys,

I'm still feeling like planning could be a good career for me, so I've been looking into it more recently. I've been talking to a couple people about possible internships in the summer, but those are for a different thread and a different time, haha. Anyway, I've been looking at various graduate schools and I'm not really sure how they all rank. My preference would be to go somewhere in the Northeast, so that's where I've been looking mainly. What would be the main advantages of a dual degree and/or a concentration? I'm assuming they would both make you more marketable, but is one more of a niche thing than the other?

[Queenducky21]

The question really is-- what is the dual degree that you are thinking about? Economics? MBA?
Also, where do you want to be after you get your MUP?

[Isaac]

I was looking at the infrastructure planning and public policy dual degrees at Rutgers, but it was mainly just out of curiosity. Out of all the concentrations I've seen, I find the community development tracks pretty interesting. One of the things that really appeals to me about planning is getting to know and strengthen a community, since in the past two years I've seen my hometown completely turned around from what it used to be (old, lots of closed stores, etc to farmer's market, an art scene, etc). I think I'd be more interested in a small town, but I wouldn't mind spending some time in a large city just for the experience. I'm hoping by the time I'd be applying I can narrow it down of course, but that's just where my interests are currently.

[Blide]

Concentrations often have no bearing on what you'll ultimately be doing in your career. It's good to pick something you're passionate about in school but don't necessarily expect that to be what you'll be doing once you graduate. Upon graduation, your knowledge base should be be broad enough that you can handle most entry-level planning positions. Then that first job will likely have more of an impact on your career trajectory than any concentration in school.

As for dual degrees, I'm kind of mixed on those. They take more time to complete and I'm not sure they really open more doors for you. Depending on what your second degree is, it could give you the leg up on certain jobs but it could also pigeonhole you out of other jobs. I'm not sure whether that's the best situation to be in out of school. I think a second degree would be more helpful further down in your career once you get some experience and figure out your niche. Although some degrees like public administration or architecture would be more beneficial if you got them out of the way early and took them as a dual degree option.

[gtpeach]

My degree actually is in public policy, and I have found it to be a helpful background to have as a county planner. It at least provided me with the basic skills to understand how to evaluate different policy impacts and make planning decisions from that perspective, which seems to be valued more highly in my rural/suburban community than design considerations in a lot of cases. I also think, though, that you could probably get the same benefit by taking some of your elective planning classes in the public policy department without having to tack on extra time and money to actually getting a dual degree (unless you just really want one) if that's an option. I would suggest a public finance course and a policy analysis course at the least. If there's a dual degree program, it's also possible that some of the courses are cross-listed in both departments. I went to Georgia Tech and don't know anything about Rutgers, but that was true for our planning and policy courses.

Good luck with your decision!

Sandy

[Isaac]

Thanks guys. I was wondering that sort of stuff about concentrations and dual degrees. The main thing I was wondering was if a specific concentration or dual degree would be reason to pick one school over the other. It sounds like it isn't, which is fine by me.

[akshali2000]

It depends on what the concentration you are interested in is. Say, if you were interested in transportation planning or ecology or urban design, but the school didn't really have a lot of focus on that, then...you'd be disappointed. However, based on what I hear from second year students, their interests changed a lot once they got to planning school. Also, funding and curricula are always changing and sometimes can be quite flexible and interdisciplinary, so you might get opportunities which you didn't anticipate (and vice versa, opportunities which you anticipated might not be available during your year). But if you're pretty flexible, then it shouldn't matter?

[Isaac]

I am flexible, but at the same time I don't want to be kicking myself down the line because I made a poor choice. But mainly, I just want to make the best educated decisions I can. I have a couple years to make the decision still thankfully. Also this is just a random question, but would it harm me if I were to wait about a year after getting my undergrad to apply to grad schools? I want to take the time to actually visit the ones I apply to, but the way my schedule is it wouldn't be possible until after I graduate.

[akshali2000]

I am flexible, but at the same time I don't want to be kicking myself down the line because I made a poor choice. But mainly, I just want to make the best educated decisions I can. I have a couple years to make the decision still thankfully. Also this is just a random question, but would it harm me if I were to wait about a year after getting my undergrad to apply to grad schools? I want to take the time to actually visit the ones I apply to, but the way my schedule is it wouldn't be possible until after I graduate.

I actually did exactly that. My schedule senior year was very tight, and I didn't want to rush the whole application process. I graduated, then took a year off to apply. this gave me time to do internships, study for the GRE, spend time with family, work, and apply to jobs/opportunities while at the same time putting a portfolio together and visiting schools and/or going to grad fairs. I don't regret taking the one year out, because who knows, you may decide to to something completely different. But if not, at least you had time to prepare for graduate school. Also though, if you have time, try and use that time to brush up on statistics, economics, and/or any planning related books or software you may want to try or brush up on. After a year off, you may find it hard to get back into the academic mode of thinking. Even studying for the GRE at a regular pace helps with getting back into "study" mode.